Category: AU (for inventing Obi-Wan's background); warm fuzzy
holiday mush
Summary: this is me inventing a holiday for the boys to
celebrate...
Disclaimer: Obi and Quigs belong to George. Obi's friends
mentioned in passing are out of JA1. The original stuff is
mine. Nobody's getting paid for this.
Feedback: 'tis the season!
Warning: a few laws of science flew out the window on this one
(and me a physicist's daughter!)
Author's note: Thanks and festive Jedi sporting strategically
placed bows to Kathye! (Oh, and Krychick, I know I'm supposed
to be working on the next Bill installment, but this one was
time sensitive!)
They had been on Moryeen for six weeks now. What had begun as
delicate trade negotiations between the rulers of the five
continents on the planet had turned into a full scale overhaul
of the intercontinental constitution, with at least one ruler
threatening to pull the planet out of the Republic. With
intense mediation, and not a little bullying, agreement had
finally been reached that afternoon. With any luck, it would be
ratified within the week and they could all go home.
Outside Obi-Wan's window, a light summer rain was falling. He
stared out at the misty darkness, trying to banish the
self-pity that had been building all day.
'This is ridiculous,' he thought as he knelt to meditate. 'Jedi
do not wallow.'
It was midwinter on Wyrra, a large island in the Great Northern
Sea of Larrigan, Obi-Wan's home world. He had hoped that
between the conversion of the Larrigan calendar to Standard,
and again to the longer days of Moryeen, he would lose track of
the time. It hadn't worked. Obi-Wan was a native Wyrran, and
knew in his bones even half a galaxy away that his island was
in darkness, and would remain so until the faint gray dawn in
two day's time signalled the return of the sun.
Obi-Wan tried to push the feeling away, to empty his mind, but
a single image refused to be banished. In the quiet darkness he
was trying to create, a small, russet-coloured candle burned
bright and clear. A Solas Candle. With a mental sigh, he
changed tactics. If banishing the thoughts didn't work, perhaps
embracing them would. He settled into a light trance, and let
himself remember.
The Wyrran midwinter celebration was as simple as it was
comforting. In the face of the one day each year when there was
no dawn at all, family and friends gathered together, passing
the time by telling stories, singing songs, and generally
enjoying each other's company. At the center of it all was the
Solas Candle, whose properties Obi-Wan, in spite of much
scrutiny, still didn't understand. The Candle seemed to feed
off of the emotional energy of its surroundings - a room with a
dozen people sharing tales and laughing could be made as bright
as day by the single small flame. He suspected it had something
to do with the Force, but as the making of Solas Candles was a
closely guarded secret passed from mother to daughter, he
doubted he would ever know for sure.
Obi-Wan's earliest memories were of watching the flame
flickering as he lay in his mother's arms. Midwinter was an
important part of Wyrran culture, so much so that after Obi-Wan
had gone to the Jedi Temple, his annual visit to Wyrra had
always been arranged so that he would be home for the
celebration.
When he was ten, he was granted the level of Initiate, and the
visits home ended. When a package from his mother revealed a
Solas Candle, he set out to recreate his own midwinter as best
he could, recruiting his closest friends - Reeft, Garen Muln
and Bant - for the purpose. On the night that his bones told
him was Midwinter on Wyrra, they snuck into an out-of-the-way
common room where they spent hours talking and giggling by the
light of the Candle. By unanimous acclaim, it became a
tradition for the group. When Obi-Wan was thirteen, the Wyrran
midwinter fell shortly after his first return to Coruscant as
Qui-Gon's padawan. Still uncertain of his place with his
enigmatic master, he snuck out of his new quarters to celebrate
with his friends.
The following year, when the package containing the Solas
Candle arrived, Obi-Wan showed it to his master, explaining its
significance and shyly asking if Qui-Gon would like to be part
of the midwinter festivities. Qui-Gon had agreed, and as one of
his close friends was now Master to Padawan Reeft, she was
invited as well. They gathered in the common room of Qui-Gon
and Obi-Wan's quarters, and despite some initial nervousness on
the part of the children, the evening was a great success.
As the years passed, Garen's and then Bant's masters were added
to the party, and it became a time for the friends to catch up,
trading anecdotes from the past year's training and missions.
The year that Obi-Wan was eighteen, Qui-Gon invited his own
former master. To the surprise of the padawans (and one or two
of the masters), Master Yoda had a sly sense of humour and told
the funniest stories of all. Qui-Gon merely remarked that,
given Master Yoda had 800 years of anecdotes to choose from,
they should not have been surprised. Yoda too was intrigued
with the properties of the Solas Candle, but not even he could
unravel its secrets.
Looking back, Obi-Wan realized that in twelve years, this was
the first time he had been away on a mission during midwinter.
He thought of the small package that must be waiting on the
table in their darkened quarters on Coruscant, and suddenly
felt very small and far from home.
No. This was exactly what he was trying to avoid. His
concentration broken, Obi-Wan moved so that he was leaning
against the edge of his bunk. He was no longer a child, to be
crying for the comforts of the past. The truth was he had been
lucky to have had those twelve years. As he and his friends
grew older, missions became more frequent and more complicated,
and once they were knighted they would see even less of each
other. Time would go on, and the Jedi with it.
//Obi-Wan?//
Startled out of his thoughts, Obi-Wan checked his shields,
belatedly hoping he hadn't been broadcasting.
//Yes, Master?//
//Could you come in here?//
//Yes, Master.// He got to his feet and walked through the dark
room to the door. Opening it, Obi-Wan was surprised to see the
common room also in darkness. He took a step forward, then saw
it. The tiniest of lights, flickering on the left side of the
room. A sliver of hope shot through him, and the light flared,
allowing him to see Qui-Gon standing beside the low table where
the candle sat.
"Master?"
"It isn't much, I know, but..." Qui-Gon stopped as his padawan
crossed the room, staring at the candle flame as if entranced.
"How?" he said, finally tearing his eyes from the light and
looking at his master.
Qui-Gon grinned, obviously very pleased with himself. "Padawan,
why don't we sit down?"
Obi-Wan sat, and was surprised again when Qui-Gon produced two
glasses, which he filled with a dark, effervescent liquid.
Obi-Wan took the glass offered to him, and sniffed it
curiously.
"Iced Olora?" he asked.
Qui-Gon gave a nod, then raised his glass. "Happy Midwinter,
Obi-Wan," he said, then drained his drink. Obi-Wan smiled and
followed suite.
Feeling the chill of the Olora change to a comfortable warmth
that settled through him, Obi-Wan slowly sipped his second
glass. "I wouldn't have thought that the Moryeen would have
this in stock."
Qui-Gon said nothing, but the brief look that flashed across
his eyes gave Obi-Wan his answer.
"How did you manage to keep it chilled all this time?"
"I asked one of the kitchen staff to keep it in cold storage
until it was needed," Qui-Gon admitted.
"Your explanation being?"
"I am an inscrutable Jedi Master, Obi-Wan. My actions require
no explanation."
Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow. "When I'm a Jedi Master, will I be
able to say things like that with a straight face?" he asked
archly.
"When you are a Jedi Master with a padawan of your own, you
will realize that keeping a straight face is the most important
part of the job."
Obi-Wan rolled his eyes, but Qui-Gon merely blinked at him, his
expression calm and serene. "You are joking, right?"
"Yes. I am," Qui-Gon replied with perfect seriousness, an
expression he maintained until his padawan burst out laughing.
Recovering his composure, Obi-Wan looked down at the Solas
Candle, which was now creating flickering shadows throughout
the room. Seeing the unspoken question, Qui-Gon set his glass
on the table, then settled back into the couch cushions. "The
Moryeen are known for being stubborn and detail oriented," he
began.
"I'm well aware of that, Master," Obi-Wan interrupted, then
fell silent at his Master's look, assuming an air of padawan
attentiveness.
"When the delegates stormed out of the room - the first time
they stormed out of the room - I knew we were going to be here
a while. I sent a communication to Wyrra explaining the
situation, and your mother sent the Candle here. If, by some
miracle, the negotiations had turned out to be brief, I would
have brought it back to Coruscant."
Obi-Wan nodded, seeing the logic in the explanation. "How did
you know it was today?"
"It was a rather simple time conversion, Padawan," Qui-Gon said
dryly, causing Obi-Wan to blush, "And your being withdrawn all
day confirmed my suspicions. Don't apologize - it made the
surprise that much easier to plan."
Obi-Wan couldn't help but return his master's mischievous grin.
"You're lucky that Wyrrans aren't given to elaborate
celebrations."
A strong hand caressed Obi-Wan's cheek as Qui-Gon leaned
closer. "I'm lucky for far more than that," he said softly.
Their lips met in a slow, gentle kiss, and the air around them
brightened significantly. "I'm sorry we couldn't get back to
Coruscant in time, Padawan."
Obi-Wan twined his fingers with Qui-Gon's, then looked around
the room. "All things considered, it's probably for the best.
That little candle's worse than a mind probe."
"Oh?"
"Bant has a lovely singing voice, but it wasn't the Ballad of
Aari that lip up the room last year."
Qui-Gon closed his eyes and shook his head. "I was worried
you'd know it was me," he said, smiling.
Obi-Wan looked down at the hand that held Qui-Gon's. "I was
more afraid of you finding me out than of Master Yoda..." He
shivered slightly, and felt Qui-Gon's grip tighten as the light
abruptly dimmed. "You don't think the Council suspects, do
you?"
Something hardened in Qui-Gon's eyes. "If the Council
suspected, they'd have separated us already, pending further
investigation. Our devotion to the Force remains unquestioned,
Padawan."
"Would they really make us leave the Order?"
"There is no passion; there is serenity," Qui-Gon quoted,
looking past Obi-Wan to some middle distance. "The Council
believes the old argument that intimacy creates a new set of
demands on a Jedi's attention, clouding our ability to hear the
will of the Force."
"But you don't believe that." The statement came out almost as
a question, as Obi-Wan searched his master's face.
"I did, once." Qui-Gon pulled Obi-Wan close, shifting so that
his arm lay around Obi-Wan's shoulders, the younger man's head
resting against his chest. "I have since been persuaded that
your ancestors had the right of it all along."
"My ancestors?"
"Yes, Obi-Wan. Tell me, what does that Solas Candle of yours
mean?"
Obi-Wan stared thoughtfully into the flame for a moment. "A
spark of light kept alive in the face of gathering darkness,"
he said. "The warmth of people banding together to weather the
long night."
"Consider the Candle as a visible representation of the Force -
a spark of light against the darkness," Qui-Gon said,
unconsciously slipping into instruction mode, "It guides us and
warms us; if we know how to wield it, it can protect us from
what lurks in the shadows. If you and I were what the Council
would have us be, that candle would burn, as any other would.
But as we are not..."
"The flame burns brighter," Obi-Wan finished, as understanding
washed through him.
"The Wyrran people learned long ago to let love be the strength
that carries them through the darkest days. Council or no
Council, I would do the same."
Obi-Wan turned to face his master. "And I," he said. He placed
a soft kiss on Qui-Gon's lips. "Happy Midwinter, Qui-Gon."
Qui-Gon drew his arms around his padawan, pulling into a kiss
that began tenderly and grew steadily more insistent.
Some time later Qui-Gon broke away. "Perhaps we should continue
the celebration elsewhere," he said, glancing toward the door
of his room. As they stood up, Qui-Gon took Obi-Wan's hand and
began to cross the room, when Obi-Wan stopped. The young man
bent, and carefully picked up the small candle.
He grinned at Qui-Gon. "Let's see how bright this little flame
can be."
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